Time Cascade
by Jinxed-Wood
Summary: The world has been saved - again - but Martha Jones is still on the clock / Spoilers for 'Journey's End'
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer:** Doctor Who belongs to the Beeb, all I have is my Microsoft Word…_

**Time Cascade**

The rain drizzled relentlessly, and Martha pulled up the collar of her jacket as she jumped out of the jeep and looked around. It seemed like a typical British morning, but the illusion fell apart once you realised that the rain didn't extend further than forty meters behind you, and that its epicentre was a stone throw's ahead, and about twenty meters below your feet.

Martha felt her mouth go dry as she looked into the crater, its curved sides melted into a sheer silicate bowl. The object itself was a blurred grey, like the uneasy colours of a spinning top; all the hues flowing wildly into one.

"When was it found, Lieutenant?" she asked tersely.

"Just after dawn, this morning," her driver spoke up "It was called in at Oh Six Thirty."

"Who's been informed?" Martha asked, as she stepped closer to the edge and tried to focus on its shape. She couldn't decide what it looked like…or maybe_ it_ couldn't decide what it looked like.

"HQ has sent someone up from London, she's waiting for you in the command tent," the Lieutenant said.

Martha sighed, it had been less than twenty four hours since the last crisis had been averted, and she was already on the clock again; so much for a quick trip down to Kenya to see Tom and recharge her batteries.

"I'm so sorry," she murmured, already rehearsing the telephone conversation in her mind. "Can't make it – you understand, don't you?" She sighed; she was making way too many phone calls like that of late. Maybe Jack had a point, Torchwood _was_ the better option.

But first she had to instigate a few changes at UNIT, namely shutting down the Osterhagen key. Earth needed to start thinking outside the box when it came to protecting itself.

Martha shivered as she looked down at the tableau. As fascinating as the object was, it wasn't why she'd been called in. She was here because of the objects that surrounded it; a ring of Daleks, their weapons blazing - but their laser fire had never reached its target because the entire crater was frozen in time.

Cautiously, she poked at the air ahead of her, and nodded grimly as it met resistance.

"Everything has been tried," her driver said. "Bullets, Semtex, even a missile… They've done everything except nuke it."

Martha gave him a sharp look. "Not a bright idea," she said "All they'd succeed in doing is irradiating Norfolk."

Realisation showed in the driver's eyes. "You know what it is, don't you?"

"Yes, although the sheer scale of it…" Something caught her eye and she bent down to pick it up. Its delicate structure had curled in on itself.

"Doctor Jones… Ma'am?"

"It's time locked," Martha said quietly. "Is the Brig back from Singapore, yet?"

"No, ma'am, his flight doesn't land until tomorrow."

"Then get whoever is in charge here to cordon this area off. Top priority!" Her eyes picked out a troupe of figures nearing the crater's edge on the other side. "And get those idiots away from the event horizon before they get caught in it, or something worse. Move the perimeter back at least ten meters from the edge."

"But Ma'am—"

"Just do what I _say, _Lieutenant," she said tersely. We've lost enough people to the Daleks in the last few days, don't you think? Let's not make any foolish decisions."

"Ma'am!"

Martha watched him run in the direction of the command tent, and sighed. She didn't like to pull rank like that, it made her uneasy, but she needed a moment alone. She pulled out her mobile, and flicked it open, dialling a number she knew by heart.

_"Hey, how's Norfolk?"_

Puzzled, Martha frowned at her phone. "Mickey?"

"_Yeah._" She heard a sigh and the scrape of a chair. "_Jack left his phone on the couch. Give me moment – OY, CAPTAIN CHEESCAKE, MARTHA IS ON THE PHONE!"_

Martha winced and pulled her ear back from the phone. She guessed Jack had convinced Mickey to have a look around Torchwood, despite his reservations.

_"Sing for me, Martha." _

Martha grinned at the sound of Jack's voice. "You're never going to let that go, are you?" she asked.

"_It's part of my charm,_" he said. "_What's up?_"

"Trouble," Martha said.

"_What kind of trouble?_"

"A dozen Daleks caught in a giant time lock sort of trouble."

"_Sounds bad... but there's more."_

"Yeah," Martha admitted reluctantly.

"_You're going to make me drag this out of you, aren't you?" _

"Sorry," she said. "I just don't know how to put this, especially after the last time… I'm not sure this is going to have a happy ending."

"_Martha, you're beginning to scare me._"

"I'm beginning to scare myself," Martha murmured. She took a deep breath. "The Daleks aren't alone in the time lock, Jack, there's something else in there… and I think it's Gallifreyan."

The silence was almost deafening.

"Jack?" Martha asked cautiously.

"_Martha, do you know what you're saying? Are you sure?_"

Martha looked at the silver, alien leaf in her hand. "Yeah, I'm sure."


	2. Chapter 2

The area was beginning to resemble a three ring circus by the time Martha saw Jack's SUV pull off the dirt track. She squeezed her way between two tanks, which had trundled their way over from the nearest army base, and nodded to a RAF officer, who was in deep conversation with a U.S. Air Force general who had just flown in from a base in Colorado – an old friend of General Sanchez, apparently, who had something to do with deep space telemetry.

Martha waved as she saw Jack jump out of the SUV, and began to grin as Gwen, Ianto and Mickey jumped out after him. Gwen caught sight of her and waved back, a huge smile on her face, as Jack ignored the harried looking sentry and jumped over the cordon.

"You could have just flashed him your credentials, you know," Martha said, as she nodded to the sentry, who backed off.

"Ah, but where would be the fun in that?" Gwen said, as she hopped over too and wrapped Martha in a hug. "How are you? Is Tom okay?"

"Yeah, I talked to him last night," Martha said. "He's shaken, but he's alright. How's Rhys?"

"Oh, he's fine—"

"So, where is it?" Mickey interrupted impatiently. "Does it look like the TARDIS? It isn't disguised as an ice cream truck or something, is it? Let me have a look."

"Oh, I'm not so sure we can do that," Jack drawled. "After all, this is official Torchwood business, and as you haven't signed up yet…"

Mickey tapped him on the back of the head. "Don't start."

Ianto rolled his eyes. "They've been like this all day," he said. "I'm beginning to feel like I'm living in an eighties buddy cop movie."

Jack smirked. "And my mind has just gone to places they've never been before, which is something I don't say too often."

"Yeah, well it can just turn back around," Mickey said, his eyes narrowing.

"Seconded," Ianto said dryly. "I draw the line at shoulder pads."

"Welcome to Torchwood, defender of the Earth – and fashion, apparently," Gwen drawled.

Martha laughed. "Come on, it's this way," she said.

"We've got a lot of company," Jack observed.

"Yeah, well people are still a little jumpy after what happened yesterday," Martha said.

"But nobody has expressed an interest in the actual artefact?" Jack asked.

"Oh, plenty of people have expressed an interest," Martha said cautiously.

Jack eyed her. "But you haven't told them what you suspect, have you?"

"I thought it might be better if we keep this between ourselves until you've had a good look at it. Other than the Doctor, you're the only person I know who has a working knowledge of this sort of technology."

"Martha, I'm nowhere close to the Doctor's level of proficiency – and if it's Gallifreyan, he'll recognise it on sight."

"And if it's not Gallifreyan, he'll be crushed," Martha said softly. "He's had enough heartache recently, don't you think?"

"He phoned you?"

"Last night. He told me about Donna."

Jack raised an eyebrow at her. "I recognise that tone."

"Let's just say I have a few ideas," Martha said. "I'm not going to leave Donna like that."

"The Doctor doesn't seem to think it's possible."

"The Doctor is the smartest person I've met, but he isn't a medical doctor," Martha said stubbornly. "I'll think of something, give me time."

"Yes, ma'am!" Jack teased, flipping off a salute.

Martha rolled her eyes, but found herself grinning as they reached the edge of the crater. "So, what do you think?"

"It's weird, I can't seem to focus on it," Gwen said, as she pulled out her scanner. "And I can't get any readings."

"We could be seeing the effects of a chameleon circuit caught in a Time Lock. A TARDIS just as it's morphing…" Jack mused aloud. "The TARDIS's circuit broke back when the Doctor was visiting Earth during the 1960s – that's why it always looks like an old police box."

"How do you know that?" Martha asked suspicious.

Jack grinned unrepentantly. "The same way you did – from UNIT's file on the Doctor."

"I swear, our security is leakier than a sieve," Martha muttered.

"It's not that bad, actually," Ianto said softly. "It's just that Tosh was better."

Martha bit her lip as she saw the tightness around Jack's eyes at the mention of Tosh's name. Silently, she reached out and squeezed his arm.

"So," Jack said aloud, after he took a deep breath. "We've got an artefact surrounded by a circle of Daleks, caught in a miniature Time Lock.

"If this is what you call miniature, I wouldn't want to see what your version of big is," Gwen said.

"Neither would I - it's about three Galaxies wide, and holds two powerful Temporal Empires bent on mutual destruction."

"The Time War," Martha said.

"The what?" Gwen asked, disbelief showing on her face.

"The Time War, between the Daleks and Time Lords," Mickey said flatly.

"I've heard the stories," Ianto said. "But I've always thought it was a myth.

"Think again," Jack said. "It's no myth. We nearly got out own special reenactment of it, yesterday."

Mickey folded his arms. "We should call him."

Martha caught Jack's eye, and he gave an almost imperceptible nod. "Not yet," he said. "Not until we're sure."

"And how are we going to do that?" Mickey asked.

"We're going to open it, of course."

"We're going to open it?" Mickey echoed. "I was right. The cheese _has_ gone to your brain."

"We just have to be fast," Martha said. "You brought Tosh's programme, right?"

Gwen nodded. "And the generator," she said.

Jack nodded. "And if that thing is a TARDIS, like we think it is, and its chameleon circuit is still operational, that means that the TARDIS isn't shut down with a cronon shield. It should be able to resist a few moments of Dalek fire."

"_That's_ why we brought the proton guns," Mickey said. "You knew what we were going to do from the moment you got off the phone with Martha."

"UNIT means well, but they're not equipped to handle this sort of technology, Mickey, _I _should know," Martha said.

"And Torchwood is?" Mickey countered. "You weren't at Canary Wharf."

"No, but my cousin was," Martha said quietly. "And she lost her life there. It doesn't change the fact that Torchwood are the best people to deal with this, especially if the artefact has someone inside it."

Ianto sighed. "Why do I have the sudden feeling that this is one of those stories with a hole in the middle?"

"Gwen, set up the generator," Jack said. "Mickey, make sure those weapons are primed – oh, and I'd like your transmat disc, please."

"But that thing is huge," Mickey protested, as he handed the device over. "The transmat is designed for only one person."

"Don't worry, it'll work. A TARDIS's mass doesn't follow the usual rules – which reminds me—" He turned to Martha, as Mickey headed in the direction of the SUV. "Did you get the information I needed?"

"A six and an eight," Martha drawled as she watched Jack open the control panel on his wrist strap. "And he's going to kill me when he finds out."

"Then we'll have to make sure he never finds out, don't we?" Jack said. "Right, we're set. Gwen will open the Time Lock and I'll make a run for the TARDIS. Mickey and Ianto will distract the Daleks, and make sure none of them escape the crater before Gwen reactivates the Time Lock. Martha, you'll make sure that UNIT—"

"Oh no you don't," Martha cut in. "I'm going with you."

"Martha, the wristband—"

"Can carry two as well as one, and we both know it," Martha said. "I'm going, and we're taking one of the proton guns with us. The artefact – which may, or may _not_ be a TARDIS - has just been plucked out of a gun battle. They might be cranky. Remember what the Doctor is like when he's cranky?"

"I don't know about anybody else, but speaking as someone who's read the Torchwood files on the Doctor, I'd say she had a point," Ianto interrupted.

Jack sighed. "You do realise I'm supposed to be the one in charge, right?" he asked, as Mickey and Gwen arrived back.

"Actually, technically I outrank you, Captain," Martha teased, as she relieved Mickey of one of the proton guns.

"What have we missed?" Gwen asked.

"An insurrection" Jack grumbled.

"He's pouting because Martha won't let him play the Lone Ranger," Ianto drawled.

"There's always Batman," Mickey said.

Jack smirked. "Only if you'll play my Robin."

Ianto frowned. "I thought we agreed that was my role?"

"Trust me, I'm not auditioning for the part," Mickey said hastily.

"He's in denial," Jack said, in a mock whisper, into Martha's ear.

Martha grinned. "Must be the coat," she said. "Ready?"

"Always," Jack said, with a laugh.

"Oh, _please_," Mickey muttered, as he hefted the proton gun in his arms. "Just try not to get yourself killed."

"See, he does care after all," Jack said.

"Nah," Mickey shot back. "I just know I'll be the idiot who ends up dragging your sorry arse around out of there, if anything goes wrong – and my Grandmum warned me about lifting heavy weights."

"Ouch!" Jack said. "Just for that, I'm going to put you on the graveyard shift for your first month!"

"I don't work for you!"

"No, but you _will._"

"If you two lads are finished," Gwen drawled, as the generator booted up. "Let's get this show on the road."

"Has anyone bothered to inform UNIT about what we're doing?" Ianto asked. "I only ask because that gentleman over there, with all those bars on his uniform, doesn't look very happy."

"They're on alert," Martha said. "I told them we were going to try and break the Time Lock."

"But you didn't tell them we're going to transmat the artefact out of here," Jack crowed.

"You have a point?" Martha asked archly.

"My point is, you _so _belong in Torchwood."

"Jack, maybe now is not the time to start your recruitment speech," Gwen said lowly, her eyes pinned on the crater. Martha turned to look just as the air suddenly became choked with laser fire.

"Let's move!" Jack yelled, and he grabbed Martha's hand as they ran headlong down the slippery slope.

"Remind you of something?" Martha asked, as she blasted at a Dalek that suddenly spun in their direction as they reached the bottom of the crater.

"What? You mean the running?" Jack shot back. "I don't know what you mean - left!"

Exterminate! Exterminate!

The Dalek screamed at them as it suddenly exploded into flame and Martha risked a look over her shoulder, and saw Mickey give her a salute and a grin. "He's good," she said.

"He's had lots of practice," Jack said. "Whoa, have a look at the artefact!"

Martha almost stumbled. "It's a Dolmen!"

"Exterminate! Do not let them reach the Time Station! EXTERMINATE!"

Martha exchanged a look with Jack. "It's a Dolmen that's also a time station," she offered.

"That's that settled, then," Jack said, as he took the transmit disc out of his pocket. "Only a Gallifreyan would come up with something that silly. Keep them off my back."

Martha nodded as Jack ran ahead and she fired at the Dalek bearing down on them. Over half the Daleks were already taken down, but that didn't mean that the ones left couldn't do a lot of damage. "Jack?"

"I don't understand, it should work!"

Martha felt her heart sink, as she reached his side. "What's wrong?" she asked as she blasted at another Dalek.

"It's going nuts; the digits are spinning on it like a fairground game. I don't understand, it. It should be working."

"_That would be the temporal shielding; it interferes with the coordinate panels on silicate chips. We only figured out how to adjust for that after the Type 40 model."_"

Martha blinked and looked at Jack.

"It wasn't me," he protested. "It's a woman's voice."

"_How observant," _the voice said wryly _"By the way, do you need a lift, or do you find your present surroundings somehow amusing? I can never tell with humans."_

"We should not let them in. It could be a trick!"

"Shhh, Leela, they're obviously in need of assistance—"

"But they might be collaborators, trying to lure us out—"

"Uh, ladies, I hate to rush you, but we're in a bit of hurry here," Jack interrupted, pulling a face a Martha.

_"We can see you, you know!_" the voice called Leela said.

"Just let them in, Leela, I'd rather have a live collaborator on my hands, than a dead innocent."

"But Rom—"

"Leela!"

"Oh, very well!"

Martha heaved a sigh of relief, as a dark slot opened in the stone, and she followed Jack inside. "Thank you so much—"

The world spun and Martha suddenly found herself on the ground with a knife at her throat, as a scantily clad woman pinned her to the ground and kicked her gun away.

"Who are you?" the woman snarled.

"Martha, Martha Jones," Martha squeaked. "Uh…we come in peace?"

"Yes, you always do," said another voice wearily. "Let her up, Leela."

"She could be a threat. She was armed."

"And now she's not," the woman said. "Let her up, we need to find out what went wrong so we can rectify it as soon as possible." A deep groan filled the room, and the woman sighed. "Also, I think her friend may need medical attention - you didn't have to hit him _quite_ so hard."

"He seemed so strong," Leela said, shrugging as she got to her feet. "How was I to know he would go down so easily?"

"And that would be a blow to my ego, along with my head," Jack said hoarsely, and Martha scrambled to her feet and went to his side.

"You okay?" she asked,

"I'll live," Jack joked, as he eyed Leela prowl across the room and join the woman at the console "I didn't get your name?"

"I'm…Fred," the nameless woman said, looking suddenly very pleased. "Yes, call me Fred, pleased to meet you."

Leela rolled her eyes. "Not this again."

Martha shrugged. "Well, at least it's a bit more original than John Smith."

"Ah," Fred said. "I should have known. The Doctor is involved in this, isn't he?"


	3. Chapter 3

Martha straightened and looked around the chamber. It was at _least_ twice the size of the Doctor's control room in the TARDIS, and its walls and high, arched ceiling gleamed a dark mahogany. The central console looked like it had been constructed by an overly enthusiastic cabinet maker, all intricate wooden inlays and brass knobs.

The only object that looked vaguely familiar, Martha decided, was the time rotor, which glowed a rich amber as it throbbed quietly. Its presence reassured her as the woman who called herself Fred eyed them both. "Well, what am I going to do with you two?" she asked "As if things weren't difficult enough, already."

"Maybe you could decide that later," Martha suggested, not taking her eyes off Leela as she helped Jack to his feet. "After we dematerialise, that is – this thing does dematerialise, doesn't it?"

"It's been known," Fred said dryly, her hands a blur on the console. "But my calculations show that there has already been a substantial diversion from the optimum timeline. The lock is straining at the seams as it is, one more time differentiation could exasperate the problem even further."

"The problem?" Jack prompted, as he dusted himself off.

"You're wearing a vortex manipulator," Fred said briskly. "So I presume you have a basic understanding of quantum mechanics?"

Jack eyed her cautiously. "Yeah…?"

"And you've just succeeded in releasing us from a time lock, from which I extrapolate that you have a basic understanding of what a time lock actually is."

"It means that you were not only locked in time, but out of time too," Martha offered.

Fred paused and looked up from the console, her eyes catching Martha. "And you also know the Doctor, which means you probably know _why_ we were locked in time."

"To stop the Time War," Martha said softly.

"And it worked, didn't it," Fred asked softly. "The universe is still here, so it worked…" Martha watched as Leela silently put a comforting hand on Fred's arm. For a moment, they leaned into each other, as if in some silent communication, and then the woman who called herself Fred straightened once more, a look of determination on her face. "We need to move fast," she said. "The larger a time lock is, the harder it is to keep intact. We need to be inserted back into our proper place in the timeline and locked in again – and I'm going to need your help to do that."

"Wait a minute, let me get this straight, you've just been freed from the Time War – and you want to go back?"

"There's no other way," Fred said grimly. "The history of the Daleks and Gallifrey is too intertwined to extricate, the time lock is dependent on us _both_ being trapped in it. As it is, we may have a larger problem on our hands. If I'm here, the chances are it's the result of a rather large Dalek breach – and I'm not talking about the handful of Daleks outside."

"Davros," Martha said.

Fred groaned. "But of course it is him, irritating little man."

"Irritating _dead_ little man," Jack said.

Fred gave him a sharp look. "Did you trap his corpse in a time lock?" she asked.

"We didn't really have time," Martha said. "We had a little problem with the Dalek mother ship – it was busy exploding around us."

"Damn," Fred muttered. "Too much to ask for, I suppose."

"But if he is dead, surely there is no problem?" Leela asked.

"Yes, that was what_ I _said the first time I thought he died," Fred muttered. "Trust me, he's still out there, worst luck." She tapped her fingers on the console, a frown of concentration on her face. "What to do, what to do… Oh dear, nothing for it, I suppose – hold on!" The ship groaned, and the ship reeled slightly, as a familiar, rhythmic thrum filled the air.

Martha grinned, despite herself. "So it _is_ a TARDIS," she said.

"You were in doubt?" Fred asked as she ran around the console, and pulled a lever. Her movements were more reserved than the Doctor's, but Martha could see the same restless energy in them.

"The Daleks outside called this a Time Station," Jack said suddenly.

"Ah," she said, a smile lurking on her lips for a moment. "Just another name for a really big TARDIS, I'm afraid."

"That's it, huh?" Jack drawled.

"Scout's honour," she said.

"You never were a scout," he said. "And where did you pick up _that _phrase from?"

"Where do you think?" she asked absently, as she studied the controls in front of her. "My, my, you have been busy recently, haven't you? Gravitational fluctuations, temporal uncertainties in the planet's core – and what's this, your magnetic north is slightly out of sync? I'd get that fixed, if I were you. What have you been doing, taking the planet for a whirl around the Galaxy?"

"No, just the Medusa Cascade," Martha said.

Fred blinked. "Really? How strange… something to do with the sealed rift there, I presume," she asked.

Martha looked at her warily. "We're not exactly sure," she said, examining her face intently. "But _I'm _sure you're leaving something out."

"Yes, I am," Fred said quietly. "But it has nothing to do with our present predicament, so let's leave it, eh? We need to solve the problem at hand, which means we need to find the remains of Davros."

"I hate to break it to you but that might be a bit difficult," Jack said. "Last time we saw Davros, he was under a pile of rubble, and the ship he was in subsequently got blown to smithereens."

"I see," Fred said. "Ah well, sooner started, sooner finished...where can I drop you off?"

Martha caught Jack's eye. "Actually, I think it's best if we went with you," she said eventually.

"See, I told you they would be trouble," Leela said flatly. "They do not even say what they truly mean."

"Hello – pot, kettle?" Jack said.

"He has a point, Leela," Fred said.

"But Romana—"

"Romana?" Jack leaped on the name. "Why the pseudonym?"

Her eyes narrowed. "And your birth name is Jack?" she countered.

"Okay, guys, this conversation is swiftly getting off track," Martha cut in. "We have bigger problems to deal with. If Fred – Romana – is right and the time lock is in danger of breaching, the Daleks could reappear at any moment with another reality bomb. I don't know about you two, but I'm sick and tired of watching the stars go out."

"She speaks the truth," Leela said softly.

Romana sighed and leaned on the console. "You do understand that this may be a one way trip?" she asked. "You may end up dead or, worse, trapped in the Time Lock with us."

Martha looked at her. "Is it really that bad?" she asked softly.

"I'm a Time Lord," she said simply. "For us, time is alive. We sense it around us and feel its flow; to have its current staunched and cut off is…is…it is difficult." She paused. "Although Leela says it wasn't as hard for her."

Leela nodded. "But I am Sevateem, a human, it's not our way to sense such things," she said.

"We're getting off topic again," Romana said, her voice brisk once more. "We need to find Davros, and quickly, before the weakness in the Time Lock becomes irreparable – oh, and one more thing."

"Yeah?" Martha asked

"I'd like to keep what we've just discussed between us," Romana said, frowning at her. "I don't want the Doctor getting any strange ideas."

"He has nothing _but_ strange ideas," Leela muttered

"Strang_er_, then," Romana allowed. "So, where did this mother ship explode?"

Martha and Jack looked at each other. "The Medusa Cascade," they said in unison.

"A second out of time," Jack added, a moment later. "I'm not exactly sure what that means, but the Doctor thought it was important."

Romana nodded. "I have a suspicion, but we'll see when we get there," she fiddled with the console. "Hold on, this may get a little bumpy. The fabric of reality is a bit frayed in that area of space." The TARDIS shuddered and its time rotor moved. For a moment, Romana stared at it, as if mesmerised. "I never thought I'd do this again," she said.

The TARDIS sighed around them, and Martha shook her head in bemusement as she gingerly put her hand on the wall. "It feels different, it really _feels _different," she said quietly. "It's a TARDIS but…" she couldn't find the exact words for it.

"The Doctor's vessel is a Type 40," Romana said quietly. "She old, verging on ancient; most of her class were retired centuries before the Time War. That sort of age gives a ship personality, at least what_ we _understand as personality. They're _all_ sentient, of course, but they just don't think same way most humanoid species do… too linear."

"Most humanoid species, but not all," Jack said.

Romana smiled wryly. "There's always an exception that proves the rule, I would have thought your travels with the Doctor would have taught you that….and we're here."

"We are?" Martha asked, startled. "Wow, I didn't feel that at all."

"I suppose you could say this vessel has better suspension than you're used to," Romana said, as a slot on the console opened. A 3D holographic image appeared above their heads, showing the Medusa Cascade.

"It's beautiful," Martha breathed.

"Quite a lightshow," Jack agreed. "But I don't see any wreckage.

Romana frowned at the interstellar map "Hmm, hold on a moment." She pulled a lever, and the time motor moved a few inches. The hologram shifted, and Martha's eyes widened as the hologram suddenly became cluttered with wrecked and holed Dalek spacecraft.

"It seemed the Doctor was a tad annoyed," Romana said, under her breath, as she checked a screen on the console. "DNA traces consistent with Dalek mutation technology and…wait…he's not here."

"What do you mean he's not here?" Jack asked flatly. "He's got to be here. Nothing could have survived that, _nothing_."

"Davros is from Skaro, his DNA strands are still recognisably Kaled in origin," Romana said. "There's none here, not even a dead skin cell. Even if he had been totally disintegrated, I should be able to pick up some trace of his existence – wait!" She frowned worriedly at the screen. "Judoon? What were the Judoon doing here?"

"Oh no, that doesn't sound good," Martha said.

"Jackboot policing at its best," Jack drawled. "That's all we need, the Shadow Proclamation. Do you know the amount of paperwork we'll have to fill out to even get an appointment?"

"The Shadow Proclamation?" Romana echoed. "The Judoon now work for the Shadow Proclamation? How strange."

"Not really," Martha muttered. "According to the Doctor, they were in a real tizzy about the Daleks. They actually wanted the Doctor to lead them into battle."

Romana winced. "I can imagine how well that went down."

"Like a ton of square concrete things," Martha said, with a small smile.

Romana drummed her fingers on the console, her mind obviously elsewhere. "My databanks are obviously out of date," she said suddenly, as she looked up at the map. "A bit of discreet revision is necessary, I think." A holographic keyboard appeared in front of her.

"What does that mean?" Martha asked, as Romana traced her fingers over the indecipherable glyphs, her fingers moving nimbly.

"I think that's Time Lord speak for hacking," Jack said, amused.

"Would you rather handle the paperwork," Romana countered.

Leela shuddered. "Please, no more bureaucracy. I've had my fill of it in this lifetime."

"I know how you feel," Martha muttered. Jack opened his mouth and Martha quirked an eyebrow at him. He shut it again.

"I've got something," Romana said. "A Judoon fleet came through here a few hours ago, and then headed straight for the Pancake Galaxy."

Martha's mouth twitched. "The Pancake Galaxy?"

Romana frowned at her, puzzled. "Isn't that what I just said?"

Yeah, but…seriously? The Pancake Galaxy? I mean who would name a galaxy after something you put lemon and sugar on?"

"Uh, that would have been us," Jack said, raising a hand.

"I always assumed the dish was named after the galaxy," Romana muttered, as she fiddled with the console's controls. Suddenly, her head sprung up. "Wait, does that mean the Milky Way was named after the chocolate bar?"

Leela perked up. "Chocolate?"

Jack started to laugh. "Oh yeah," he said, "Just like old times."

"Let's hope not," Martha said. "I'd like to get through this trip without seeing the world end again."

"No promises," Romana said quietly, as she adjusted the hologram above them. "See their trajectory? Luckily they don't have temporal engines, or this chase could have been _really _difficult."

"I don't understand," Martha said.

"Martha, may I introduce you to Sontaran space," Jack said grimly.

"And wherever the Judoon are going, it's smack dab in the middle of it," Romana added.

Leela crossed her arms. "That is _not_ good. There may be a battle ahead."

"With the Sontarans there's always a battle ahead," Martha said snorted. "But what the hell are the Judoon doing there?"

"Returning to base, apparently," Romana said, flipping a switch. The hologram zoomed in on the Pancake Galaxy, and then a solar system. A red, pulsating dot revolved around its sun. "Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the SPRAD satellite – which stands for _Shadow Proclamation Research And Development_, apparently. Now, don't we all feel well informed?"

"Personally, I think I'm beginning to feel a little bit sick," Martha muttered. "Why Sontaran Space?"

"To make it difficult for the casual observer to visit, I've no doubt," Romana said grimly. "Never a good sign."

"The Sontarans are signatories to the Proclamation, like most space faring species," Jack explained. "Except the Sontarans can be a bit more creative when it comes to bending the rules."

"And I'm guessing the Shadow Proclamation might look the other way in exchange for a spot to set up a discreet lab station," Romana said. "I have a _very_ bad feeling about this. We need to hurry." Once again, her hands moved across the console, and the time rotor began to slowly move.

Leela strode towards a door "We may need more weapons," she said, over her shoulder.

Romana sighed, but didn't contradict her. "Could you bring me my red coat while you're at it?" she called after her.

"Do you think there's going to be trouble," Martha asked quietly.

"I hope not," she murmured. "But the Shadow Proclamation is acting strangely. They might be a bit hidebound and stiff in their ways, but they've never shown signs of corruption before. What can be causing it, I wonder…." She stopped and shook her head. "It's none of my business, of course. My mission is to retrieve Davros's remains and reinstate the time lock."

Jack raised his eyebrows at Martha, who shrugged in response. Who knew what really went on in the mind of the Time Lord. She'd only met two in her life, and one of them had been a psychotic monster.

Leela reappeared, with an extra knife and a blow pipe in her belt, and a red coat draped over one arm. Romana took it from her.

"You'd better let me do the talking," she said, as she shrugged it on. "Who knows, maybe we can get Davros's remains without any trouble, once we explain ourselves."

Leela snorted. "You do not believe that," she said.

"No, but I can hope," Romana said with a weary smile. She pulled a lever and a panel slid back, revealing a dull metal door.

Martha felt a hand drop on her shoulder, and looked up to see Jack's concerned face. "You okay with this?" he asked.

"Hey, this is not my first trip in a Time and Space machine, you know," Martha joked. "I know what I'm getting myself into."

The door slid open and Romana stepped out, Leela a half step behind her.

"After you," Jack said, with a smirk.

Martha rolled her eyes and grinned, as she strode through the door - and ran straight into Leela's back. She staggered to a halt, her eyes taking in Leela's raised hands, and then Romana's. "Bugger," she said, slowly raising her hands as she noticed the troupe of Judoon pointing their weapons at them.

"Marthas, wha—" Jack stopped mid stride. "Uh, hi guys. Nice day for it, isn't it?"

"_You have gained unauthorised entry to a secure facility; identify yourself!_" the lead Judoon boomed.

"I don't talk to lackeys," Romana said sharply. "Take me to someone in charge!"

"_I do not obey commands from an intruder. You will identify yourself._" the leader repeated.

"I've already said all I'm going to say," Romana pronounced and Martha winced - and she thought the Doctor's people skills were bad.

"I'm Jack Harkness" Jack said, with a wide smile. "Torchwood, Earth."

"_You are lying,_" the Judoon said. "_Earth is a class 5 planet. It does not have interstellar travel_."

"Well, you'd better just lock us up, then," Romana said brightly. "Lead the way!"


End file.
